Extra lobe on placenta???

Just had my 20 week ultrasound. Dr. said I have an extra lobe on my placenta. They are about the same size although one is slightly smaller. They are connected and there is blood flow between them. The Dr. said that he didn't think it was a case of a vanishing twin. I asked what it all meant and he said just to make sure during delivery that my OBGYN was sure to get both out should they come apart. He also mentioned that it may become a problem in my third trimester if the baby doesn't continue to grow. So of couse now I'm freaking out that my baby won't continue to grow and I'll end up having to have an emergency c-section, not to mention the possibility of hemmoraging if I deliver natually. Has anyone else had this problem and what was the outcome? I'm terrified I'm going to lose my baby. I don't think I processed everything during the dr. apt and didn't ask questions. Can't call the dr. until monday and my next ultrasound isn't until 4/4. I have to go every 6 weeks for check ups now. That doesn't sound like something they'd do if this was no big deal. Scared.

Comments (11)

I had this with my first. Left that appt feeling very scared, as you sound now. Went for monthly us to make sure she was growing fine and she was. Had her vaginally at one day shy of 41 weeks after going into labor on my own. She is a beutiful, healthy, smart 2 year old today. The only really bad part was that after I delivered her and the placenta my ob had to go in with her hand (yup, you read that right) to remove the lobe which was almopst as big as my dtr's placenta and that really hurt, although it was over in less than a minute. The hemorraging issue occurs only if the placenta(s) are covering your cervix, doc would have probably talked to you about that if that was true in your case. Try not to freak out, having that extra lobe is rare as I understand but doesn't necessarily mean anything bad will happen and as I understood it generally everybody is fine.

I had one with my last pregnancy. Baby grew just fine and she is healthy and happy. :) I had to have emergency surgery because my lobe was left behind and caused massive hemorrhaging but that doesn't mean that it will happen to you. Try not to worry too much

I had this with my last baby, mine was a total surprise though we had no clue, my uterus shrunk down really small after baby was born but I was haveing SERIOUS crampy then the next day in the shower I felt something wierd "down there" and started freaking out and called the nurse she thought just a little piece of tissue and was shocked when it came out! it was crazy! My son was 7.4lbs at 38 weeks so no growth issues :) but trust me be glad you have warning!!!!

I have the same thing. I try not to think about it or I get too stressed out. I'm going for a vaginal ultrasound in 2 weeks to see where the vein connecting the 2 pieces is. If it goes underneath then I have to have a c-section. If not, we should be ok. I'm really worried about the vein breaking and the baby being in trouble, and the risk of hemmoraging. We almost need our own group so we can keep in touch!

I'm 32 weeks now and haven't had any problems. I had another ultrasound last week and the doctors said everything looked good. There's still blood flow between the two lobes and he must be growing b/c I sure am! I have one more ultrasound in 5 weeks and then i'm done. At that point if there would be a problem such as slow growth, I'd be considered full term and they would get the baby out. All of my doctors seem to think I'll be able to have a normal vaginal delivery like I want. So for those of you who have this condition, please try not to worry too much. I worked myself up about it for weeks and now that I'm nearing the end, I'm not worried about it so much. Just make sure when you deliver the doctors get both lobes out if they come apart. Have your partner remind them too. It should be in your medical records but i'm sure it'll be the last thing on your mind after pushing a baby out. Good luck!

I just gave birth on 5/15/2012- healthy baby boy- 8lbs 5ozs. He had been diagnosed with a marginal insertion of the cord- cord implated off center. not high risk- i worked until a week before my due date and had to be induced. just yesterday- yes 6 and 1/2 weeks AFTER I gave birth- I delivered a placental lobe that I had NO IDEA was there!! I had serious cramps- which I thought was my period- turns out I was actually have contractions for a few days. I felt fine yesterday and just felt it coming out- looked almost like a small heart- or my husband said it looked like a chicken wing. No pain at all- soo weird. I went to the hospital and the dr and midwife on call were totally shocked bc it's so rare. I think during the delivery they were all so concerned about the cord insertion- no one paid attention to me having an odd placenta- they thought it was the insertion issue but it was the lobe. I feel fine- and I wonder if this explains some of the weird feelings I was having and my lack of breastmilk (due to the hormone that's supposed to be released when the placenta detaches). I go for the follow up things this week- like a transvaginal ultrasound and meeting with the dr to look at the bloodwork, pathology, etc. CRAZYYYYY!!!!! So lucky I didn't have any complications- however I had a positive outcome and didn't even know I had it- like I said- healthy baby boy- over 11 bs now and totally thriving reaching all the milestones. I would say don't worry- but when you are a mom that's what we do. However, some things are out of our control and you have to have faith that they will work out. All babies are miracles- but these extra little things will make you hold that baby a little tighter. It all goes by so fast- don't worry too much or you won't enjoy this time in your life.

Thank you guys for all your input, I found out about mine at my 18 week ultrasound but was not too worried about it until today (28 week appt) when my dr explained about the water rupturing the vessel between the two placentas and possible c section. I had to fight back tears in the office today I was so incredibly upset! But it is good to read so many positive stories of it.

I had a scheduled induction at 40 weeks. Had been having what I thought were Braxton-Hicks for 2 days. Was told that the contractions were causing the baby's heart rate to dip. Was never induced. Emergency c-section and told the placenta had 2 lobes and was the likely cause of the dipping heart rate. Baby was 7-1/2 lbs and perfectly healthy but a terrible birth experience. If I had been warned maybe I would have handled it more gracefully and not cussed out ever nurse and doctor. ;)